MICROBIAL DEGRADATION OF POLYHYDROXYALKANOATES

Polyesters such as poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) or other polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) have attracted commercial and academic interest as new biodegradable materials. The ability to degrade PHA is widely distributed among bacteria and fungi and depends on the secretion of specific extracellular PHA d...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annual review of microbiology 2002-01, Vol.56 (1), p.403-432
Main Authors: Jendrossek, Dieter, Handrick, René
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amino Acid Sequence
Bacteria - genetics
Bacteria - isolation & purification
Bacteria - metabolism
Bacteriology
Biodegradable materials
Biodegradation, Environmental
Biological and medical sciences
Carboxylic Ester Hydrolases - metabolism
Enzymes
extracellular PHB depolymerase
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Intracellular Fluid - metabolism
Intracellular Fluid - microbiology
intracellular PHB depolymerase
Metabolism. Enzymes
Microbiology
Molecular Sequence Data
Paucimonas lemoignei
Polyesters
Polyesters - chemistry
Polyesters - metabolism
polyhydroxybutyrate
Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
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Summary:Polyesters such as poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) or other polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) have attracted commercial and academic interest as new biodegradable materials. The ability to degrade PHA is widely distributed among bacteria and fungi and depends on the secretion of specific extracellular PHA depolymerases (e-PHA depolymerases), which are carboxyesterases (EC 3.1.1.75 and EC 3.1.1.76), and on the physical state of the polymer (amorphous or crystalline). This contribution provides a summary of the biochemical and molecular biological characteristics of e-PHA depolymerases and focuses on the intracellular mobilization of storage PHA by intracellular PHA depolymerases (i-PHA depolymerases) of PHA-accumulating bacteria. The importance of different assay systems for PHA depolymerase activity is also discussed.
ISSN:0066-4227
1545-3251
DOI:10.1146/annurev.micro.56.012302.160838