Biosynthesis of poly[(R)-3-hydroxyalkanoate] copolymers with controlled repeating unit compositions and physical properties

Biomacromolecules. 2012 Sep 10;13(9):2964-72. doi: 10.1021/bm301043t. Epub 2012 Aug 17.

Abstract

As applications for biodegradable and biologically produced poly[(R)-3-hydroxyalkanoates] (PHAs) grow into more specialized areas, the need to precisely control the repeating unit composition and consequently the physical properties of these polymers has become essential. A previous study reported our development of Escherichia coli LSBJ in order to produce PHA polymers composed of single repeating units ranging from 4 to 12 carbon atoms. This investigation expands the scope of our effort toward controlling the repeating unit composition of a variety of PHA copolymers. The sizes for the repeating units within the copolymers were modulated by feeding specific ratios of fatty acids with defined carbon lengths to E. coli LSBJ, which resulted in defined mole ratios for the repeating units. Various physical properties of the copolymers (including the Young's modulus, elongation to break, and glass-transition temperature) were shown to be strongly dependent upon the mole ratios of repeating units. This work demonstrates that copolymers of PHAs with repeating units from 4 to 12 carbons can be incorporated accurately to obtain any desired mole ratio within the PHA copolymers. Our methodology may thus be extended to generate tailor-made PHA copolymers with prescribed values for key sets of physical properties.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Biocatalysis
  • Biocompatible Materials / chemistry*
  • Biocompatible Materials / metabolism
  • Bioreactors
  • Culture Media / chemistry
  • Elastic Modulus
  • Escherichia coli / chemistry
  • Escherichia coli / metabolism*
  • Fatty Acids / chemistry
  • Fatty Acids / metabolism*
  • Fermentation
  • Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy
  • Materials Testing
  • Molecular Weight
  • Polyhydroxyalkanoates / biosynthesis
  • Polyhydroxyalkanoates / chemistry*
  • Structure-Activity Relationship
  • Temperature
  • Tensile Strength

Substances

  • Biocompatible Materials
  • Culture Media
  • Fatty Acids
  • Polyhydroxyalkanoates