DEINOVE produces Muconic Acid from cellulosic feedstocks
In France, DEINOVE has produced muconic acid in their laboratory using second-generation substrates.
“Bio-based muconic acid is a real renewable alternative for the chemical industry, it will be able to replace petroleum-based industrial processes on significant markets,” said Emmanuel Petiot, CEO of DEINOVE. “Deinococcus is no doubt a well-suited microorganism for the development of this new process, with a metabolism that is naturally oriented toward muconic acid and unique characteristics in view of the low-cost conversion of second-generation substrates (production of cellulases and action at high temperatures).”
DEINOVE recently announced that it had deployed a new R&D platform dedicated to the production of muconic acid, a versatile chemical intermediate whose derivatives – caprolactam, terephthalic acid (a precursor to PET) and adipic acid — are widely used in the plastics industry, and the production of synthetic fibers for textiles, and acidifying agents for food.
DEINOVE has since obtained proof of concept in their laboratory for the transformation of second- generation cellulose-based materials into muconic acid. Furthermore, the improvements made to the strains have made it possible to multiply production by five compared to the previous trials carried out on monosaccharide-based model substrates, glucose and xylose.
Cellulose is one of the main components in biomass, plants and wood, as well as in paper and cardboard (also called second-generation materials). This is a complex molecule (sugar chains with 6 carbon atoms) that have to be broken down into monosaccharides before fermentation (a step know as hydrolysis).
Category: Research
