Oxygen-tolerant hydrogenases in hydrogen-based technologies

Abstract

To develop a viable H2 technology, production of H2 has to be significantly enlarged by using renewable resources. One option of generating H2 is the photosynthetic conversion of sunlight and water directly to H2 and O2. Photosystems and hydrogenases are currently being exploited for the design of efficient H2-producing systems that require highly active and O2-tolerant biocatalysts. This communication focuses on two challenging features: hydrogenases that produce H2 in the presence of O2, and direct electron transfer between photosystem I (PS I) and hydrogenase. The latter is accomplished by connecting both modules through a protein fusion or a synthetic molecular wire. These are first steps toward a photosynthetic microbial cell or a semi-synthetic system that may be employed in future H2-based technologies.