Characterization and cloning of oxygen-tolerant hydrogenase from Klebsiella oxytoca HP1

Inactivation of hydrogenase-3 leads to enhancement of 1,3-propanediol and 2,3-butanediol production by Klebsiella pneumoniae

Klebsiella pneumoniae can use glucose or glycerol as carbon sources to produce 1,3-propanediol or 2,3-butanediol, respectively. In the metabolism of Klebsiella pneumoniae, hydrogenase-3 is responsible for H2 production from formic acid, but it is not directly related to the synthesis pathways for 1,3-propanediol and 2,3-butanediol. In the first part of this research, hycEFG, which encodes subunits of the enzyme hydrogenase-3, was knocked out, so K. pneumoniae ΔhycEFG lost the ability to produce H2 during cultivation using glycerol as a carbon source. As a consequence, the concentration of 1,3-propanediol increased and the substrate (glycerol) conversion ratio reached 0.587 mol/mol. Then, K. pneumoniae ΔldhAΔhycEFG was constructed to erase lactic acid synthesis which led to the further increase of 1,3-propanediol concentration. A substrate (glycerol) conversion ratio of 0.628 mol/mol in batch conditions was achieved, which was higher compared to the wild type strain (0.545 mol/mol). Furthermore, since adhE encodes an alcohol dehydrogenase that catalyzes ethanol production from acetaldehyde, K. pneumoniae ΔldhAΔadhEΔhycEFG was constructed to prevent ethanol production. Contrary to expectations, this did not lead to a further increase, but to a decrease in 1,3-propanediol production. In the second part of this research, glucose was used as the carbon source to produce 2,3-butanediol. Knocking out hycEFG had distinct positive effect on 2,3-butanediol production. Especially in K. pneumoniae ΔldhAΔadhEΔhycEFG, a substrate (glucose) conversion ratio of 0.730 mol/mol was reached, which is higher compared to wild type strain (0.504 mol/mol). This work suggests that the inactivation of hydrogenase-3 may have a global effect on the metabolic regulation of K. pneumoniae, leading to the improvement of the production of two industrially important bulk chemicals, 1,3-propanediol and 2,3-butanediol.

A review on biological biohydrogen production: Outlook on genetic strain enhancements, reactor model and techno-economics analysis

Modernisation of industrial and transportation sector would have not imaginable without the help of fossil fuels, but constant usage has led to many environmental concerns. As a step forward, for safer next generation living we are forced to look into green fuels like bio‑hydrogen and higher alcohols. This review mainly focuses on bio‑hydrogen production via biological pathways, genetic improvements, knowledge gap, economics, and future directions. Dark and photo fermentation process with the factor influence the process (pH regulation, temperature, hydraulic retention time, organic loading rate, Maintenance, Nutrient) is studied. Integration of dark fermentation and microbial electrolysis cell is the most trending progression for sustainable bio‑hydrogen production. Genetic improvement of microbe for biohydrogen production via inactivation of hydrogenase (H2ase) and improve oxygen tolerant H2ase. In future, bioaugmentation, multidisciplinary integrated process and microbial electrolysis needs to be experimented in industrial level scale for successful commercialization. About 41.47 mmol H2/g DCW h at 40 g/L of optimum biohydrogen production was obtained through glycerol fermentation. From the studies, the cost of biohydrogen production was found to high with respect to the direct bio photolysis it cost around $7.24 kg-1; for indirect bio photolysis it cost around $7.54 kg-1 and for fermentation it cost around $7.61 kg-1.

Hydrogenase and Nitrogenase: Key Catalysts in Biohydrogen Production

Hydrogen with high energy content is considered to be a promising alternative clean energy source. Biohydrogen production through microbes provides a renewable and immense hydrogen supply by utilizing raw materials such as inexhaustible natural sunlight, water, and even organic waste, which is supposed to solve the two problems of "energy supply and environment protection" at the same time. Hydrogenases and nitrogenases are two classes of key enzymes involved in biohydrogen production and can be applied under different biological conditions. Both the research on enzymatic catalytic mechanisms and the innovations of enzymatic techniques are important and necessary for the application of biohydrogen production. In this review, we introduce the enzymatic structures related to biohydrogen production, summarize recent enzymatic and genetic engineering works to enhance hydrogen production, and describe the chemical efforts of novel synthetic artificial enzymes inspired by the two biocatalysts. Continual studies on the two types of enzymes in the future will further improve the efficiency of biohydrogen production and contribute to the economic feasibility of biohydrogen as an energy source.

A Stepwise NaHSO3 Addition Mode Greatly Improves H2 Photoproduction in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

NaHSO₃ addition greatly increases the yield of H₂ photoproduction in a unicellular green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii through removing O₂ and activating hydrogenase but significantly impairs the activity of PSII, an electron source for H₂ photoproduction. Here, a stepwise addition mode of total 13 mM NaHSO₃, an optimal concentration for H₂ photoproduction of C. reinhardtii identified in a previous one step addition method, significantly improved H₂ photoproduction. Such improvement was believed to be the result of increased residual PSII activity in an anaerobic background, but was at least independent of two alternative electron sinks for H₂ photoproduction, cyclic electron transport around PSI and CO₂ assimilation. Based on the above results, we propose that increased residual PSII activity in an anaerobic environment is an efficient strategy to enhance H₂ photoproduction in C. reinhardtii, and the stepwise NaHSO₃ addition mode is a case study in the strategy.

Improved O2-tolerance in variants of a H2-evolving [NiFe]-hydrogenase from Klebsiella oxytoca HP1

In this study, we investigated the mechanism of O2 tolerance of Klebsiella oxytoca HP1 H2-evolving hydrogenase 3 (KHyd3) by mutational analysis and three-dimensional structure modeling. Results revealed that certain surface amino acid residues of KHyd3 large subunit, in particular those at the outer entrance of the gas channel, have a visible effect on its oxygen tolerance. Additionally, solution pH, immobilization and O2 partial pressure also affect KHyd3 O2-tolerance to some extent. We propose that the extent of KHyd3 O2-tolerance is determined by a balance between the rate of O2 access to the active center through gas channels and the deoxidation rate of the oxidized active center. Based on our findings, two higher O2-tolerant KHyd3 mutations G300E and G300M were developed.

Reversible oxygen-tolerant hydrogenase carried by free-living N2-fixing bacteria isolated from the rhizospheres of rice, maize, and wheat

Hydrogen production by microorganisms is often described as a promising sustainable and clean energy source, but still faces several obstacles, which prevent practical application. Among them, oxygen sensitivity of hydrogenases represents one of the major limitations hampering the biotechnological implementation of photobiological production processes. Here, we describe a hierarchical biodiversity-based approach, including a chemochromic screening of hydrogenase activity of hundreds of bacterial strains collected from several ecosystems, followed by mass spectrometry measurements of hydrogenase activity of a selection of the H₂-oxidizing bacterial strains identified during the screen. In all, 131 of 1266 strains, isolated from cereal rhizospheres and basins containing irradiating waste, were scored as H₂-oxidizing bacteria, including Pseudomonas sp., Serratia sp., Stenotrophomonas sp., Enterobacter sp., Rahnella sp., Burkholderia sp., and Ralstonia sp. isolates. Four free-living N₂-fixing bacteria harbored a high and oxygen-tolerant hydrogenase activity, which was not fully inhibited within entire cells up to 150–250 μmol/L O₂ concentration or within soluble protein extracts up to 25–30 μmol/L. The only hydrogenase-related genes that we could reveal in these strains were of the hyc type (subunits of formate hydrogenlyase complex). The four free-living N₂-fixing bacteria were closely related to Enterobacter radicincitans based on the sequences of four genes (16S rRNA, rpoB, hsp60, and hycE genes). These results should bring interesting prospects for microbial biohydrogen production and might have ecophysiological significance for bacterial adaptation to the oxic–anoxic interfaces in the rhizosphere.

Current status of the metabolic engineering of microorganisms for biohydrogen production

The improvement of H2 production capabilities of hydrogen (H2)-producing microorganisms is a challenging issue. Microorganisms have evolved for fast growth and substrate utilization rather than H2 production. To develop good H2-producing biocatalysts, many studies have focused on the redirection and/or reconstruction of cellular metabolisms. These studies included the elimination of enzymes and carbon pathways interfering or competing with H2 production, the incorporation of non-native metabolic pathways leading to H2 production, the utilization of various carbon substrates, the rectification of H2-producting enzymes (nitrogenase and hydrogenase) and photophosphorylation systems, and in silico pathway flux analysis, among others. Owing to these studies, significant improvements in the yield and rate of H2 production, and in the stability of H2 production activity, were reached. This review presents and discusses the recent developments in biohydrogen production, with a focus on metabolic pathway engineering.