Phototrophic hydrogen production from a clostridial [FeFe] hydrogenase expressed in the heterocysts of the cyanobacterium Nostoc PCC 7120

Luisana Avilan, Baptiste Roumezi, Véronique Risoul, Christophe Sébastien Bernard, Arlette Kpebe, Mayssène Belhadjhassine, Marc Rousset, Myriam Brugna, Amel Latifi

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Abstract

    The conversion of solar energy into hydrogen represents a highly attractive strategy for the production of renewable energies. Photosynthetic microorganisms have the ability to produce H2 from sunlight but several obstacles must be overcome before obtaining a sustainable and efficient H2 production system. Cyanobacteria harbor [NiFe] hydrogenases required for the consumption of H2. As a result, their H2 production rates are low, which makes them not suitable for a high yield production. On the other hand, [FeFe] enzymes originating from anaerobic organisms such as Clostridium exhibit much higher H2 production activities, but their sensitivity to O2 inhibition impairs their use in photosynthetic organisms. To reach such a goal, it is therefore important to protect the hydrogenase from O2. The diazotrophic filamentous cyanobacteria protect their nitrogenases from O2 by differentiating micro-oxic cells called heterocysts. Producing [FeFe] hydrogenase in the heterocyst is an attractive strategy to take advantage of their potential in a photosynthetic microorganism. Here, we present a biological engineering approach for producing an active [FeFe] hydrogenase (HydA) from Clostridium acetobutylicum in the heterocysts of the filamentous cyanobacterium Nostoc PCC7120. To further decrease the O2 amount inside the heterocyst, the GlbN cyanoglobin from Nostoc commune was coproduced with HydA in the heterocyst. The engineered strain produced 400 μmol-H2 per mg Chlorophyll a, which represents 20-fold the amount produced by the wild type strain. This result is a clear demonstration that it is possible to associate oxygenic photosynthesis with H2 production by an O2-sensitive hydrogenase.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)5775-5783
    Number of pages9
    JournalApplied Microbiology and Biotechnology
    Volume102
    Issue number13
    Early online date24 Apr 2018
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - Jul 2018

    Keywords

    • Clostridium acetobutylicum/enzymology
    • Hydrogen/metabolism
    • Hydrogenase/genetics
    • Industrial Microbiology/methods
    • Nostoc/genetics
    • Organisms, Genetically Modified/genetics

    Fingerprint

    Dive into the research topics of 'Phototrophic hydrogen production from a clostridial [FeFe] hydrogenase expressed in the heterocysts of the cyanobacterium Nostoc PCC 7120'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

    Cite this