University of Wisconsin–Madison researchers engineer bacteria to produce two chemicals simultaneously

In Wisconsin, University of Wisconsin–Madison researchers have engineered bacteria that can produce two chemical products at the same time from underutilized plant fiber. And unlike humans, these multitasking microbes can do both things equally well. The discovery, detailed in a paper in the December issue of the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology, could help make biofuels more sustainable and commercially viable.

The resulting strains produced both PDC, a key ingredient of plastics like nylon and polyurethane, and the target carotenoid — with no discernible loss to either yield. Even better, the bacteria accumulated carotenoids within their cells, which must be separated from the solution that contains the PDC, which they secreted.