Microbial valorization of oil-based substrates for polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) production � Current strategies, status, and perspectives

• Main Authors: Lim, S.W., Kansedo, J., Tan, I.S., Tan, Y.H., Nandong, J., Lam, M.K., Ongkudon, C.M.
• Format: Article
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 2023
• Online Access: http://scholars.utp.edu.my/id/eprint/37514/; https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85160673512&doi=10.1016%2fj.procbio.2023.05.013&partnerID=40&md5=b03838f5a6a9e2228038201e975cac34

With the rising interest in developing polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) bioplastics as an auspicious substitute for conventional plastics, the exploitation of low-cost oil substrates for PHA biosynthesis has become popular recently. In view of the paucity of feasibility studies on lipid-based PHA production, this paper aims to provide an overview of the PHA production from diverse lipid-rich sources, covering the PHA production efficiencies using different plausible fermentation strategies and the key influencing factors for oil-based PHA production. Considering the high conversion efficiency (97.5 of the theoretical PHA yield), direct fermentation of oil has shown great promise for PHA industrialization. Plant oils which could achieve a high PHA yield (0.25�0.77 g/g) are better carbon sources than waste cooking oil (0.15�0.28 g/g). In addition to providing information on the potential enhancement tools (i.e., mixed cultures, metabolic engineering, and kinetic studies) for lipid-based PHA production, this paper also reviews the techno-economic and life cycle assessment of PHA production in comparison to the conventional plastics. Besides, technical challenges and future perspectives for the commercialization of oil-based PHA production have been discussed (specifically targeting on the concerns of inconsistent production efficiency, complex recovery process, and high production cost), offering further insights towards developing a sustainable circular economy. © 2023