Open AccessMolecular aspects of bacterial nanocellulose biosynthesis
Author(s) -
Jacek Paulina,
Dourado Fernando,
Gama Miguel,
Bielecki Stanisław
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
microbial biotechnology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.287
H-Index - 74
ISSN - 1751-7915
DOI - 10.1111/1751-7915.13386
Subject(s) - nanocellulose , biochemical engineering , microbiology and biotechnology , synthetic biology , production (economics) , metabolic engineering , nanotechnology , computer science , business , computational biology , biology , engineering , materials science , biochemistry , cellulose , economics , macroeconomics , enzyme
Summary Bacterial nanocellulose ( BNC ) produced by aerobic bacteria is a biopolymer with sophisticated technical properties. Although the potential for economically relevant applications is huge, the cost of BNC still limits its application to a few biomedical devices and the edible product Nata de Coco, made available by traditional fermentation methods in Asian countries. Thus, a wider economic relevance of BNC is still dependent on breakthrough developments on the production technology. On the other hand, the development of modified strains able to overproduce BNC with new properties – e.g. porosity, density of fibres crosslinking, mechanical properties, etc. – will certainly allow to overcome investment and cost production issues and enlarge the scope of BNC applications. This review discusses current knowledge about the molecular basis of BNC biosynthesis, its regulations and, finally, presents a perspective on the genetic modification of BNC producers made possible by the new tools available for genetic engineering.