Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2019 Jun 11;11(6):1035.
doi: 10.3390/polym11061035.

Biomass-Derived Production of Itaconic Acid as a Building Block in Specialty Polymers

Bernadette-Emőke Teleky  1 , Dan Cristian Vodnar  2
Affiliations
Review

Biomass-Derived Production of Itaconic Acid as a Building Block in Specialty Polymers

Bernadette-Emőke Teleky et al. Polymers (Basel). .

Abstract

Biomass, the only source of renewable organic carbon on Earth, offers an efficient substrate for bio-based organic acid production as an alternative to the leading petrochemical industry based on non-renewable resources. Itaconic acid (IA) is one of the most important organic acids that can be obtained from lignocellulose biomass. IA, a 5-C dicarboxylic acid, is a promising platform chemical with extensive applications; therefore, it is included in the top 12 building block chemicals by the US Department of Energy. Biotechnologically, IA production can take place through fermentation with fungi like Aspergillus terreus and Ustilago maydis strains or with metabolically engineered bacteria like Escherichia coli and Corynebacterium glutamicum. Bio-based IA represents a feasible substitute for petrochemically produced acrylic acid, paints, varnishes, biodegradable polymers, and other different organic compounds. IA and its derivatives, due to their trifunctional structure, support the synthesis of a wide range of innovative polymers through crosslinking, with applications in special hydrogels for water decontamination, targeted drug delivery (especially in cancer treatment), smart nanohydrogels in food applications, coatings, and elastomers. The present review summarizes the latest research regarding major IA production pathways, metabolic engineering procedures, and the synthesis and applications of novel polymeric materials.

Keywords: Aspergillus terreus; biosynthetic pathways; biotechnology; drug delivery; hydrogels; itaconic acid; polymers.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The chemical structure (a), properties (b) and chemical synthesis from citric acid (c) Δ: heat input.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Biological pathway of IA in (a) A. terreus, (b) U. maydis; and (c) in macrophages.
Figure 3
Figure 3
IA conversion into profitable derivatives.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Hydrogel swelling and drug discharge with different physical or chemical stimulations.
Figure 5
Figure 5
The chemical structure of IA synthesized hydrogels (a) Aam/IA, Aam/MEI, Aam/DEI (b) Itaconate starch semi- and diester (c) PIACS.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Poly(d,l-lactic acid-1,4-butanediol–itaconic acid) copolymer obtained from polycondensation of d,l-lactic acid, 1,4-butanediol, and IA.
Figure 7
Figure 7
The chemical structure of IA synthesized nano-scale carriers (a) PEG-P(DMAEA-co-IAc), (b) P(ITAU)-HA, (c) PIAThydCA, (d) HAp:Ln-AMP-poly(IA-MPC), (e) PVCL-hdz-IA.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Rodrigues N.M. Master’s Thesis. Tecnico Lisboa; Lisboa, Portugal: 2014. Exploring Saccharomyces Cerevisiae to Improve Microbe-Based Production of Itaconic Acid.
    1. Becker J., Lange A., Fabarius J., Wittmann C. Top value platform chemicals: Bio-based production of organic acids. Curr. Opin. Biotechnol. 2015;36:168–175. doi: 10.1016/j.copbio.2015.08.022. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Szabo K., Cătoi A.F., Vodnar D.C. Bioactive Compounds Extracted from Tomato Processing by-Products as a Source of Valuable Nutrients. Plant Foods Hum. Nutr. 2018;73:268–277. doi: 10.1007/s11130-018-0691-0. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Vodnar D.C., Călinoiu L.F., Dulf F.V., Ştefănescu B.E., Crişan G., Socaciu C. Identification of the bioactive compounds and antioxidant, antimutagenic and antimicrobial activities of thermally processed agro-industrial waste. Food Chem. 2017;231:131–140. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2017.03.131. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Isikgor F.H., Becer C.R. Lignocellulosic biomass: A sustainable platform for the production of bio-based chemicals and polymers. Polym. Chem. 2015;6:4497–4559. doi: 10.1039/C5PY00263J. - DOI

LinkOut - more resources